Hot-water heater.



W. H. BRIGHT.

' HOT WATER HEATER. AYPLIOATION rum 1m. 15, 1909.

Patented-Jan. is, 1910...

WARREN H. BRIGHT, 0F MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA.

HOT-WATER HEATER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Jan. 18, 1910.

Application filed March 15, 1909. Serial No. 483,505.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, WARREN H. BRIGHT, a citizen of the United States,residing at Mlnneapolis, in the county of Hennepin and State ofMinnesota, have invented certain new and useful Improvements inHot-Water Heaters; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full,clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enableothers skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use thesame.

My present invention has for its object to provide an improved tankheater, especially adapted for use in connection with hot water tanksused to supply hot Water for kitchen, bath and similar purposes, and tothis end, it consists of the novel devices and combinations of deviceshereinafter described and defined in the claims.

Particularly this invention is designed as an improvement on the deviceshown and claimed in my prior patent No. 863,504, of date August 13,1907, entitled heating system.

The invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, wherein likecharacters indicate like parts throughout the several views.

Referring to the drawings: Figure l is a view in vertical sectionillustrating my invention as applied to an ordinary hot water tank; Fig.2 is an enlarged horizontal section, taken on the line 1: 00 of Fig. 1;F ig'. 3 is a vertical section showing a slightly modified form of theso-called tank heater;

and Fig. 4 is a vertical section showing the tank heater made in theform of a coil.

The hot water tank 1, is shown as supported in an upright position withits lower end above the floor, by means of the customary legs 2. Thecold water is supplied to the lower portion of said tank 1 from asuitable source, such as a city water main, by a pipe 3, and the hotwater for service is drawn o-ii from the top of said tank through a pipe4.

In the construction illustrated in Figs. 1,

2 and 3, the boiler or water heater is in the form of a small sheetmetal receptacle, located just below the tank 1 and securely connectedto the lower head thereof by a short coupling sleeve or collar 6. Belowthe boiler 5 is a gas burner 7 shown as supported on a floor bracket 8.Preferably the bottom of the boiler 5 is formed with up- 'wardlyextended pockets 9, which increase respectively, by a verticaLpartition14 that extends less than from end to end thereof, the upper end of thesaid partition being spaced from the upper end of the said sleeve 10, soas to leave a port or passage 15 that connects the upper extremities ofthe said two conduits. A port 16 opens from the bottom of the tank 1into the upper portion of the cold water conduit 13, through one side ofthe tube 10, and a port 17 opens from the upper portion of the boiler'5into the lower portion of the hot water conduit 12 through the otherside of said tube 10.

So far as the broad idea of the invention is concerned, the partition 14may be located either diametrically within or to one side of the axis ofthe tube 10. However, greatly improved results are obtained by placingthe partition to one side of the axis of said tube, so as to give a coldwater conduit 13 which has materially greater cross section than the hotwater conduit 12.

The numeral 18 indicates a faucet or a valve pipe, which leads from thebottom of the boiler 5. The water which is brought to a very hightemperature within the boiler 5 will pass upward through the port, 17,conduit- 12, and pipe 11, to the top of the tank 1, while the cold waterwill pass from the bottom of the said tank 1 downward through the port16 and conduit 13 to the bottom of the boiler 5. Under ordinaryconditions, there will be no tendency for the hot water to short circuitor turn directly downward through the conduit 13, but if the pipe 11should be clogged by sediment, the water may take this short circuit,thus permitting such circulation of the water to prevent generation ofsteam with the resulting excessive pressure.

The advantages in having the cold water conduit 13 of greater crosssection and conductive capacity than the hot water conduit 12, may bestated as follows: It assures a greater volume of cold than of hot waterbeing drawn off, when the faucet 18 is opened. In case the water usedcontains mud or other impurities, which settles on the bottom of thetank 1, such sediment may be drawn off through the faucet 18 withoutdanger of clogging the relatively large conduit 13 through which thewater will be almost entirely drawn. Also it prevents much of therelatively hot waterfrom being drawn from the top of the tank 1 throughthe pipe 11 and relatively small conduit 12. Furthermore, the said coldwater or return conduit 13 is less liable to be clogged under ordinaryconditions of circulation. The relatively small hot water conduit 12also tends to hold the water longer within the boiler 5, so that itwillreach a high enough temperature to carry it upward through the pipe 11,which pipe 11 when the heater is started, passes through a relativelycold body of water in the lower portion of thetank 1.

The dividing partition 14. in the tube 10 terminates below the extremeupper end of the said tube 10, or with a passage which connects theupper extremities of the hot and cold water conduits, and this is highlyimportant because it eliminates the danger that might often be found incirculating connections of this general type. This, as already stated,gives the water a chance to work its way to any part of the heater orboiler, even if the pipe 11 or the port 16 should become clogged. Itwill, of course, be understood that the tube 10 may be provided with anydesired number, one or more, of the ports 16 and 17. i

The construction shown in Fig. 3 is like that illustrated in Figs. 1 and2, with the exception that the'tube 10 is provided with a downwardlyflaring lower end extremity 10 and the bottom of the boiler 5, insteadof having the several pockets 9 is provided with'a single centrallylocated indentation or pocket 9*.

In the construction illustrated in Fig. 4,

the so-called boiler or heater proper, is in the form of a coil 19, theupper extremity of which is connected to the port 17, and the 7 lowerextremity of which is connected to a lateral extension 10*. Also asshown, in this view, the lower end of the tube 10 is provided withanother lateral extension 10, to which a drain pipe 20 having a valve orcock, not shown, is attached. The coil 19 is also shown as placed withina hood or housing 21, supported by the lower end of the coupling sleeve6.

What I claim is: i

1. The combination with a water tank, of a boiler located below thesame, a tube extending from said boiler upward into said tank, andprovided with a longitudinally extended partition, dividing said tubeinto hot and cold water conduits, having communication at their upperextremities, said .hot water compartment having an inlet opening.thereinto' from the upper portion of said boiler, and said cold waterconduit having a port opening thereinto from the lower portion of saidtank.

2. The combination with a tank and a boiler located below the same, of atube extending from the lower portion of said tank into said boiler, andhaving an open lower end, a. pipe extending upward from the upper end ofsaid tube, and a longitudinally extended partition in said tubeterminating at its upper end below the upper end of said tube, anddividing said tube into hot and cold water conduits, said hot waterconduit having a port connecting the same to the upper portion of said,boiler, and said cold water conduit having a port that connects thesame to the lower portion of said tank.

3. The combination with a. tank and a boiler located below the same, ofa tube formed with a hot water conduit connecting the upper portionofsaid boiler with the upper portion of said tank and with a cold waterconduit connecting the lower portion of said tank with the lower portionof said boiler, said cold water conduit having a materially greatercross section or conducting capacity than the said hot water conduit.

4. The combination with a tank and a boiler located below the same, of atube extending from said tank into said boiler, a longitudinallyextended partition located in said tube at one side of its center, anddividing the same into a relatively small hot water conduit and arelatively large cold water conduit, said hot water conduit having aport connecting the-same with the upper portion of said boiler, and saidcold water conduit having a port connecting the same to the lowerportion of said tank.

5. The combination with a tank and a boiler located below the same, of atube extending from said tank into said boiler and provided with an openlower end, a pipe extending from the upper end of said tube to the upperportion of said tank, and a longitudinally extended dividing partitionlocated in said tube at one side of its center, terminating at its upperextremity below the upper extremity of said tube, and dividing said tubein a relatively small hot water conduit and a relatively large coldwater conduit, said hot water conduit having a port connecting the samewith the upper portion of said boiler, and said cold water conduithaving a port connecting the same with the lower portion of the saidtank.

In testimony whereof I aflix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

WARREN H. BRIGHT.

Witnesses:

F. D. MERCHANT, HARRY D. KILGORE.

